Thread: PostgreSQL and virtualization

Hi all,

   I'd like to do some tests with replication, high availability, ...
with PostgreSQL. The problem I have is I don't have enough hardware to
do such tests, so I'd like to use virtualization. I'd like to do it
using linux. Nowadays there several products to do it Xen, Qemu, VMware,
... and I don't have any experience with any of them. Anybody has tried
anything like this?

Cheers!
--
Arnau

>    I'd like to do some tests with replication, high availability, ...
> with PostgreSQL. The problem I have is I don't have enough hardware to
> do such tests, so I'd like to use virtualization. I'd like to do it
> using linux. Nowadays there several products to do it Xen, Qemu, VMware,
> ... and I don't have any experience with any of them. Anybody has tried
> anything like this?

Sure,  I host PostgreSQL on vmware-server.  As far as PostgreSQL or any
application is concerned - it makes no difference at all - which is the
point of virtualization.   I'd recommend vmware-server because it is (a)
free and (b) much more mature compared to the other two.  The price of
virtualization is slower I/O so for high loads you need (1) more RAM
[never a bad thing anyway] and (2) emphasis on a good I/O subsystem
[also never a bad thing].

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Arnau wrote:
> Hi all,
>
>   I'd like to do some tests with replication, high availability, ...
> with PostgreSQL. The problem I have is I don't have enough hardware to
> do such tests, so I'd like to use virtualization. I'd like to do it
> using linux. Nowadays there several products to do it Xen, Qemu, VMware,
> ... and I don't have any experience with any of them. Anybody has tried
> anything like this?

Vmware server is free (as in beer) as it by far the easiest to get
running. However, it will also be slower than Xen. If you are just
testing, use VMWare.

Joshua D. Drake

>
> Cheers!


- --

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On Fri, Aug 24, 2007 at 07:28:43AM -0700, Joshua D. Drake wrote:
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> Hash: SHA1
>
> Arnau wrote:
> > Hi all,
> >
> >   I'd like to do some tests with replication, high availability, ...
> > with PostgreSQL. The problem I have is I don't have enough hardware to
> > do such tests, so I'd like to use virtualization. I'd like to do it
> > using linux. Nowadays there several products to do it Xen, Qemu, VMware,
> > ... and I don't have any experience with any of them. Anybody has tried
> > anything like this?
>
> Vmware server is free (as in beer) as it by far the easiest to get
> running. However, it will also be slower than Xen. If you are just
> testing, use VMWare.

You can also look at VirtualBox (www.virtualbox.org).  I my experience
it is as easy as VMWare and faster.

Regards
Johann

--
Johann Spies          Telefoon: 021-808 4036
Informasietegnologie, Universiteit van Stellenbosch

     "But the end of all things is at hand; be ye therefore
      sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things
      have fervent love among yourselves; for love shall
      cover the multitude of sins."      I Peter 4:7,8

Another view is...by the time you figure out all these virtualization solutions you can buy a used box for less than $100 (no monitor needed) and focus on the real test. By the way, in any  HA one issue will be the IP takeover on the surviving node. Under the IP will be the Mac address of the previous primary node which is now cached in switches and/or routers so a rebuild of the ARP cache will be needed. I am not sure how these virtualizations play the MAC game but minimally your test is tainted from that point of the view

Cheers
Medi